Japan's poster girl of the Mori Girl movement is undoubtedly Yū Aoi 蒼井優. An actress/ model most famous for her role as Kimiko Tanigawa in the film Hula Girls フラガール, she solidfied her image as a Mori Girl idol when she was cast as Hagumi Hanamoto in the movie adaptation of cult Mori Girl manga Honey & Clover ハチミツとクローバー. She embodies that 'awkward gamine' look perfectly-- ungroomed natural beauty, childlike features, sometimes boyish and usually dressed like a doll in billowy silhouettes and oversized cardigans. Here's a little selection of Yū Aoi photoshoots, she is often shot doing your typical Mori Girl activities.... travelling, reading, daydreaming...eating pancakes.

Yū Aoi's next big feature film will be the film adaptation of popular manga Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Roman Tan to be released this Summer. It will be a bit of a samurai gore fest but no doubt Yu Aoi fans will still flock to see her as doctor Takani Megumi. x